Thirty year mortgage rates have been attempting to push through the 5% ceiling over the past few days as continued gains in the stock market have beaten up on bond prices. Jumbo rates remain frustratingly in the 6.875% range stifling any potential recovery in the high-end home sector. Government loan rates for thirty-year mortgages are now all in line with conventional rates hanging right around 5% for the past several weeks for VA, FHA and Rural Development. High-rise condo financing remains extremely difficult to obtain here in Florida though some local banks are offering in-house portfolio ARMs such as my 5/1 and 3/1 to try and help second-home buyers take advantage of the incredible deals out there right now.

We’ve had some more mixed news on the housing front as builder confidence sank to an eight-month low while the NAHB/Wells Fargo Housing Opportunity Index showed an increase in home affordability in the first quarter to 72.5% making it the best time in two decades to buy a home. Housing starts for April fell 12.8% but, upon closer inspection of the numbers, most of that decline was in apartment and condominium construction while single family home starts actually ticked up slightly for the month.